Video: George W. and the warriors
posted at 11:01 am on July 8, 2012 by Jazz Shaw
The subjects of today’s story are a bit of an odd pairing. The first is Piers Morgan, who many of our readers likely don’t watch on a regular basis. He’s on CNN, for starters, seems to demonstrate some left skewing views and is most often seen interviewing celebrities or the inventor of Chapstick.
But this week he did a feature story on former president George W. Bush. This one has nothing to do with politics, which W largely stays out of anyway, but instead promotes a mountain bike race he sponsors for wounded veterans. The feature also tells the story of one of the warriors in question, how he happened to originally meet Bush, and how that led to the creation of this event.
“The W100 is a hundred kilometer mountain bike ride to honor our vets who have been wounded in combat, to thank their families, and to thank the groups that have helped them recover from serious injury,” explained the 43rd U.S. president.
“It’s important to me, because I want to stay connected to the veteran community. I’m not going to be a very public person, this is a rare interview for me,” revealed Bush. “And therefore, I’m worried that the vets will think I don’t care about them. So, this is a way for me to say that not only do I respect them, but I love them. And will continue to do so for the rest of my life.”
I highly encourage you to watch this video. (It’s not very long.)
No matter how you may have felt about W’s performance in office or his policies, whether you are Left or Right, this story may have you thinking a bit differently about the man. He has maintained a very private life since leaving office, staying largely out of the way of history, which I find admirable. And the W-100 is clearly not some sort of stunt to polish his image or put himself in the limelight. It really sounds like the only reason he agreed to do any press is to let more veterans know that this is available. And it seems to be helping them.
A tip of my hat to W this weekend. This is some good stuff.
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I’m surprised its not higher. We should not go into Syria under ANY circumstances…short of the US coming in danger.
nonpartisan on April 30, 2013 at 12:03 PM
64% oppose US intervention in Syria?
Barry, “Its settled then, we’re goin’ in!”
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:04 PM
This decision making stuff is hard. “Valerie? Valerie? Would you come in here, please?”
a capella on April 30, 2013 at 12:05 PM
But they crossed the red line… And Obama promised assistance if they did…
Skywise on April 30, 2013 at 12:06 PM
well it’s a good thing the President doesn’t need congressional approval to wage war then huh?
equanimous on April 30, 2013 at 12:06 PM
ok, hawkeye, we get it…
nonpartisan on April 30, 2013 at 12:07 PM
WTF is with all the repeat posts?
MelonCollie on April 30, 2013 at 12:07 PM
Not his fault — we had a database glitch. Our fault.
Ed Morrissey on April 30, 2013 at 12:09 PM
Hair Trigger.
VegasRick on April 30, 2013 at 12:10 PM
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:04 PM
So are we going in or what?
HumpBot Salvation on April 30, 2013 at 12:11 PM
database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…database gli…
equanimous on April 30, 2013 at 12:12 PM
Ok, better now.
Hey leftists – when do we get antiwar protests? Oh, that’s right, those would be RAAACIST because your boy-king was ‘elected’ to be ‘in charge’.
MelonCollie on April 30, 2013 at 12:12 PM
Phew! And I was wondering how that hiccup happened!
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:13 PM
Stay O.U.T. of Syria, especially with Obama in charge.
No American life is worth expending saving a Muslim one. Let them fight it out until they’re either all dead or exhausted.
If the Islamists win, give them a simple warning. Any attacks on the US results in the nuking of a Muslim city starting with the letter A and working down the alphabet. That way each Muslim country has incentive to protect us from attacks from another.
If Saudis attack us, nuke Aleppo.
If Iranians attack us, nuke Baghdad.
Then Cairo, Damascus, on down until they’re all dead or stop attacking us.
Charlemagne on April 30, 2013 at 12:13 PM
PinballKeyboard Wizzard.antipc on April 30, 2013 at 12:14 PM
Somebody put a nickel on the needle!!
I’m having a hard time picking which side is the “good guys” here. When I see reports of European jihadis going to Syria to fight the good fight, I don’t really see any downside to letting them have at it.
jdpaz on April 30, 2013 at 12:14 PM
We should still call that “pulling a hawkeye,” though … ;-)
Ed Morrissey on April 30, 2013 at 12:14 PM
I’d almost bet money on that. I don’t see how Barry can keep out of it.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:14 PM
“No boots on the ground” time, again?
kingsjester on April 30, 2013 at 12:14 PM
When it comes to the warring factions, there are none, from the perspective of our national interests anyway.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:15 PM
I’m with the 24%. I mean Libya worked out so well: I say we partner with AQ-affiliated Islamists again. What could go wrong?
batter on April 30, 2013 at 12:15 PM
John McCain hardest hit.
bannor on April 30, 2013 at 12:15 PM
I like it! My 15 minutes of fame!! :)
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:15 PM
Ha!
hawkeye54 – under the bus driven by Ed.
…actually it’s worse than that – Ed drives a scooter.
batter on April 30, 2013 at 12:18 PM
Exactly what I was thinking, along with, “They think they still have a say? Looks like I’ll have to show them who’s boss — again!”
Liam on April 30, 2013 at 12:20 PM
We can always send Lindsey Graham and his sweetheart Juan McCain.
celticdefender on April 30, 2013 at 12:20 PM
Does he wear a bow tie too? Somehow scooters and bow ties just seem to go together.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:20 PM
I like the way you think, Charley!
Even they’re smart enough to get that ‘equation’.
MelonCollie on April 30, 2013 at 12:22 PM
I think Barry has some of our military surplus he can sell to the rebels, at very reasonable prices too.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:22 PM
They are a very determined lot….we might have to go on nuking them all the way to Dearborn.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:23 PM
Picture this: Ed. Bow tie. Wearing nothing else. Driving over you.
(no, I will not pay your therapy bills)
batter on April 30, 2013 at 12:25 PM
.
The criteria for “go / don’t go” will be based on whether it helps the ‘One World Government’ movement, or not.
If it helps the cause of One World Government for us to go, then that’s what the decision will be. What the American people think about it be damned.
listens2glenn on April 30, 2013 at 12:25 PM
…and then they can become a regional threat. Just like the Libya/Mali model. Aaah, perfection.
batter on April 30, 2013 at 12:27 PM
If Obama’s recent history is any guide, these are precisely Obama’s objectives.
Fenris on April 30, 2013 at 12:30 PM
For once, I agree with the New York Times–we have no business in Syria.
Various leftists have argued that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was a mistake, but at the time, Saddam was a threat to our allies in the region, notably Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Obama made a name for himself by his speech at the 2004 DNC decrying the Iraq war, then he brought us into Libya to help oust Khadafi, but bungled the “peace” by enabling hard-line jihadists and the Muslim Brotherhood to come to power.
Assad in Syria is a fellow Baathist like Saddam Hussein, and doesn’t deserve our support, but there are no better alternatives–we don’t really have any friends in Syria, and lots of enemies there. If our enemies are killing each other, we don’t have to fight them.
About the only possible benefit from the Syrian conflict would be that if Assad’s army is preoccupied on its own turf, it could be an opportunity to liberate Lebanon. If we had a smart President and State Department, now would be a good time to depose a UN resolution telling Syria to get out of Lebanon “or else”, and Israel and France would probably do the dirty work.
But with Obama and Kerry at the helm, we’re a rudderless ship…
Steve Z on April 30, 2013 at 12:30 PM
Hey Hagel all ya gotta do is make sure those who go in are all muslims.
jake49 on April 30, 2013 at 12:31 PM
Great idea, but since ‘mulslim’ starts with an ‘m’, I suggest starting with Mecca.
Fenris on April 30, 2013 at 12:31 PM
Hah! I remember watching “Monty Python” with the occasional clip of one of its members playing the piano whilst naked. Can’t possibly be worse than that. :)
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:32 PM
Make a trade with Assad: give him conventional arms in exchange for his WMDs.
Then give more arms to the rebels.
And then make more popcorn.
rbj on April 30, 2013 at 12:34 PM
I see the reverse: The NYT agrees with us. Very rare, but I imagine their people know more about the matter than their precious Obama. If they were as ignorant about the world as is Dear Leader, I’m certain they’d be calling for immediate intervention.
Liam on April 30, 2013 at 12:35 PM
If that doesn’t get ‘em all riled up world wide nothing will. Create a vast target rich environment though with all the outraged muslims rioting in the streets.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:35 PM
It could be that. It could also be that antiwar protesters tend to be motivated by, you know, war, and right now nobody’s talking seriously about going to war in Syria. But I appreciate the strawman.
YYZ on April 30, 2013 at 12:36 PM
Good.
Stay out of that part of the world – too many of our young men and women have perished to try and bring civilization to those effing barbarians.
Defenestratus on April 30, 2013 at 12:37 PM
A Civil War ?
How can that be ?
Muslims dont kill Musl… Oh, never mind. It’s the religion of peace we’re talking about.
Make no mistake. This will become a proxy war between SA and Iran. Or rather Sunni vs. Shia, respectfully. Been fighting for over 1,000 years with only occasional breaks to address the infidels.
Jabberwock on April 30, 2013 at 12:37 PM
Any News if the WMD’s used by Syria have “Made in Iraq” on them?
dirtseller on April 30, 2013 at 12:37 PM
Dear Leader is not just ignorant about the world as he sees it, but misled. His entire life. He’s the perfect Manchurian President.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:38 PM
Syria, ‘Red-Lines,’ and Obama’s Feckless Foreign Policy
Heckava job, Barry!
Resist We Much on April 30, 2013 at 12:38 PM
The USA’s only action should be to cantain these fools within their borders.
As many of these nutjobs that kill each other the better.
Tater Salad on April 30, 2013 at 12:40 PM
Never let a crisis go to waste. I was just afraid that Mecca was so many letters away from Aleppo that the opportunity would be lost.
Fenris on April 30, 2013 at 12:42 PM
Send in the Muslim Brotherhood!!!
albill on April 30, 2013 at 12:44 PM
And we have no compelling reason, as a nation, to get involved in a local squabble far away from us.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 12:44 PM
62% in CBS/NYT poll: Stay out of Syria
It should be 100%.
#neoconfail
#nocaliphate
#democratwarmongering
PappyD61 on April 30, 2013 at 12:57 PM
‘So Long Muslim World, And Thanks For All The Fish!’
M2RB: KoRn
Resist We Much on April 30, 2013 at 12:57 PM
The last thing Obama needs to do is listen to McCain. This guy wants to get involved in every conflict that pops up.
Tasha on April 30, 2013 at 1:01 PM
Good idea. I’d say let’s supply them guns (Oh, yeah, forgot we did that from Libya) and let them duke it out to the last survivor. We should have stayed out of those other localized civil wars (Bosnia, Egypt, Libya) too. As it turns out, helping the Muslims fight these civil wars doesn’t encourage them to like us very much anyway.
TulsAmerican on April 30, 2013 at 1:10 PM
Meh, he’ll only listen to McCain if John parrots what Obama already has in mind, then he can boast of a “bipartisan” effort on any action taken, and have the proverbial person to throw under the bus and blame when things don’t go as planned.
hawkeye54 on April 30, 2013 at 1:11 PM
Hezbollah & Iranian Shia
vs.
Al Qaeda & Sunni Arab Jihadist
For control of Syria??
This is like a wonderful dream that I hope never ends. I hope they fight over that useless piece of land forever.
William Eaton on April 30, 2013 at 1:33 PM
Also the sad thing is Assad and the Iranians actually treat Christians (and even Jews) better than the Sunni Jihadist “Freedom Fighters” John McCain wants to help. That is how bigoted and insane the Syrian opposition to Assad is.
William Eaton on April 30, 2013 at 1:37 PM
Riiiiiight. Look, I know the truth because I watch TV. The next time you update the matrix, get me a blonde in a red dress. I deserve it. I’m value-added.
Axe on April 30, 2013 at 2:34 PM
Wow. Speaking of blondes in red dresses:
That’s a pretty clear sentiment, but this is what makes it special:
http://predicthistunpredictpast.blogspot.com/2012/09/so-long-muslim-world-and-thanks-for-all.html
lol — Some of you guys have a terrible time expressing your feelings. Just let it out. Say what you really think. Stop mincing words. :)
Axe on April 30, 2013 at 2:47 PM
Axe – I refer to this as the ‘Curtis LeMay foreign policy’, of which I’ve more or less been an adherent most of my adult life.
JEM on April 30, 2013 at 3:06 PM
It’s very appealing. :)
Sort of an international laissez-faire attitude with a touch of “I will hit you back, you know.” It’s not isolationist. It just presupposes the business of a national government is primarily that nation’s business, independently.
Kind of like sitting at a picnic table and being much more interested in your own barbequed chicken then what Bob’s eating. Bob’s only an issue when he messes with your plate, or maybe tries to make a run at the smoker. It might be necessary to beat the hell out of Bob from time to time, but that’s not why anyone’s at the lake.
I get it.
. . . and come on, summer.
Axe on April 30, 2013 at 3:34 PM
WE HAVE NO FRIENDS IN SYRIA!
Not. A. One.
mojo on April 30, 2013 at 3:50 PM
There are only 2 viable sides in Syria: Islamists and a corrupt and hostile dictatorship. There is nothing to gain by going in. Americans should concentrate upon restoring responsible government to America.
Basilsbest on April 30, 2013 at 4:44 PM